of new horizons

since last thursday, i sure have done a lot. on friday night, being our last weekend in salamanca, we decided to make the most out of it. after school, yaneth and i went to do the clerecia tour, which takes you inside of the universidad pontificia, and tells you about the history of how and when the pontifical university became what it is today. after the tour, we went to have a tinto the verano on the rua mayor and happened to run into a group of girls. we decided to join them, and it ended up being that a whole other group met up and next thing we knew, we were sitting at erasmus with nine other people enjoying patatas bravas and some great conversation. we are very lucky to be here, and so lucky to be surrounded by people we would otherwise never meet. 

at 930 pm, a few of us headed back to the clerecia. a bunch of us had bought tickets to go allllllll the way up to the clerecia towers and see the city lights. angel, my beloved portugal tour guide, told me it was THE best tour in salamanca, and he was so right. there is no elevator, so you have to climb up every stair, but once you are up there you forget about all the workout you just had to do. it is breathtaking. the lights are brightly shining upon ever single important building, and it is up there where you realize why salamanca is a world heritage city.... the entire city is lit up. the san esteban monastery, the torre del clavero, the old and new cathedral, the plaza mayor, the casa de las conchas... and the list goes on. we had a full moon and some great photo opportunities. i will never forget how i felt when i visited those towers. lucky, blessed, loved, humbled...

after the tour, we met up with a few more kids and we continued to hop around town having mojitos, beer, wine... our night ended at the PANI, the same bar that welcomed me to salamanca on my first week. i sure have grown to love it. it is such a cool place! i can't describe it any other way, ya know?

i ended up going home at about 230 am. slept evaded me til about 4 am... and on saturday i was fairly useless. i eventually got out of bed, got some cleaning done, and the ever so important laundry. i decided to start packing as well, against all my will... so far it looks like i can continue to shop. all my stuff fits. so far. so far. 

i met up with diane and amy on saturday afternoon. we went around town shopping for little gifts for our loved ones. it is hard to bring gifts and still manage to fit all the stuff on a carry on suitcase, so i bought as little as possible... i had been dying to try tapas 2.0, the gastrotasca mentioned by our cooking class teacher, javi. i managed to convince a few people to meet me and i am soooo happy we went. i tried some adventurous stuff, including iberico ham sashimi. it was incredibly good and totally worth the wait. i am trying to fit it in once more before i leave. maybe on saturday?

on sunday, yaneth and i decided to be super good and start studying for literature. we met up at our favorite fake starbucks and sugared up for a few hours while we started to memorize an endless list of authors and time periods. after starbucks, i went home, and that night a few of us went to dinner at vinodiario, a fancy place near the san esteban monastery. it was delicious, and i am super glad i got salmorejo to make up for the horrendous salmorejo experience back in segovia. 

and thus, we are now at the end of the second day of my last week of school as an exchange student. what the heck? i have waited for this experience for THREE YEARS and it has flown by. what ever happened to time going slowly?

the group has really come together in the past few days, and we have really tried to make the most of our last days together. yesterday, after class, i tutored one of my classmates for a few hours and then met a friend of MR G's, francesca. she is a spanish teacher in venice. it was refreshing to meet another adventurer in spain, and i loved talking with her and getting the italian perspective on teaching. 

today i had lunch with erin, another one of my favorite people in the program. she is hilarious, frank, and incredibly sweet. we were both in love with the patatas from erasmus, and after talking about them since friday, we decided to run in and eat some more! we had a great lunch and then went on our merry way. this evening, a few of us went to see a classmate's recital. she is an opera singer and she planned a small concert at a hotel nearby. she sang some opera, and some ranchera. it was not the greatest thing i have ever heard, but homegirl can belt out some high notes. weee!

after the concert, yaneth and i met up with brian, mateo and ashley for some of salamanca's most delicious meat @ la parrilla. we each had beer, tinto de verano, lomo, costillas and morruno. it was a glorious evening and a great way to unwind before starting finals tomorrow. as I re-read this post i am realizing how much food, although amazing, I've been eating. Weight watchers, I miss you!!!!

i started a "day in the life" project today that i hope to finish tomorrow, pending that i wake up on time to actually get the pictures taken!

tomorrow we start with our literature final. everyone is nervous. wish us luck!

xoxo

bee